Charlotte messenger. [volume] (Charlotte, Mecklenburg Co., N.C.) 1882-18??, 1887-11-05
STRANGE AFFLICTION.
A YOUNG GIRL TRANSFORMED
INTO A PEEvIsH OLD WOMAN.
Her Vitality Destroyed by an Acct
dental Shock Received in an
. Ecioos-fc Vfrh4 EsfabIiShmeuf

Her Vitality Destroyed by an Acct
dental Shock Received in an
Electric Light Establishment
On the Beeksvllle road, about six
miles from the town of Lorraine, Ohio,
lives farmer named Max Hartman, who
came from Pennsylvania about year
ago. Harmans family consists Of a wlte
and three children. The oldest, named
Mary. is a young lady nineteen years OF
age. who has passed through one Of the
strancest and most painful experiences
which ever fell to the lot of human be-
ing.
A short time ago she was plump.
rosy-cheeked girl. in robust health and
of sunny disposition. To-day, through
the influence of most peculiar accident,
she is in all but years a shrunken, peeyish
old woman. The story of this strange
metamorphosis is as follows:
Mary was engaged to be married to
man named Jacob Ebertin, who wOrSed
for Mr.. Hartman and made his home with
the family. About two months ago the
Young couple came to Cleveland to make
some purchases and see the sights. One
of the young mans friends worked in
one of the electric light establishments
at the time.
Ebertin proposed to take his future
bride through the place and show her
the machinery. 1t appears that u broken
wire Of her panier or hustle. had, un-
perceived. worked its way though her
dress. While passing along the wire
came in contact with one of the powerful
electric machines, and her hand, resting
on an iron bar at the time, completed
the current, and she received a severe
shock, and fell insensib!e to the floor.
In few moments she revived suf-
ficiently to be removed from the place,
and was taken to her home Medical aid
was summoned, and for four days the
girl lay in bed in paralyzed condition
Then she regained the use of her limbs,
but Immediately began to lose flesh
rapidly, the hair on the left side of her
head turned gray, and began falling
out. After four weeks Miss Hartman
was able to be about, but in
that time she had been transformed
from young, handsome girl into feeble
old woman. Her form, which had been
plump and rounded. was thin and bent,
and the skin on her face and body was
dry and wrinkled. She had been a
sweet tempered, affectiOnate girl, but is
now peevish, irritable and selfish. Her
voice is harsh and cracked, and no one to
look at her would imagine that she was
less than sixty years of age.
The Hartman family are Mortified and
well nigh heart broken by the fate of their
once handsome daughter, while young
Ebertin is almost frantic over the change
in his affianced bride
The physicians claim that the electric
current communicated directly with the
principal nerves of the spine and left
side of the head, and that the shock al
most completely destroyed their vitality
Instances in which a persons hair has
turned white in a single nj ght from fright,
grief or some excessive nervous shock are
not rare, but this is supposed to be the
first case in medical history in which a
person has been known to step from the
bloom of vigorous youth into the decrepi-
tude of old age within a week.-NeE
York Graphic.